Alec Baldwin, left, Dan Butler, Anne Heche, Julie Halston and Tom Aldredge star in this lukewarm adaptation of "Twentieth Century."
March 26, 2004
Twentieth Century
By Frank Scheck
Bottom line: This revival of the classic farce never gets up a good head of steam.
American Airlines Theatre, New York Through June 6
Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's classic comedy hasn't been seen on Broadway since 1950 (unless you count the 1978 musical adaptation), so the time would seem ripe for this revival. When you figure in direction by Walter Bobbie ("Chicago") and a cast including Alec Baldwin as the egomaniacal Broadway producer Oscar Jaffe and Anne Heche as the starlet Lily Garland, this Roundabout production promised to be great fun indeed.
Unfortunately, this revival of "Twentieth Century," in a new adaptation by Ken Ludwig ("Lend Me a Tenor," "Moon Over Buffalo"), mainly serves to demonstrate the difficulty of presenting farce with just the right balance of elements. Disappointingly lacking in fizz, the production doesn't quite do anything dramatically wrong, but neither does it do anything particularly right.
As you may recall from the terrific 1934 film version starring John Barrymore and Carole Lombard, the play, set on the legendary Twentieth Century train from Chicago to New York, depicts down-on-his-luck producer Jaffe's desperate efforts to woo former protege Lily, now a movie star, back to the stage. To that end, he offers her the role of Mary Magdalene in a Broadway production of the Passion Play (some fortunate timing here, thanks to Mel Gibson), bankrolled by a former business tycoon (Tom Aldredge) who, unbeknownst to him, has more religious fervor than money.
Whether the play has simply dated or Ludwig's adaptation isn't up to the job -- one suspects a combination of both -- there's little real wit in the evening, and the cartoonish characterizations and clunky dialogue do little to inspire hilarity. And while director Bobbie keeps the antic proceedings moving at a reasonably fast pace, his production doesn't achieve the required ebullience.
The stars, unfortunately, do little to enliven the evening. While one might have thought that Baldwin, so skilled at portraying unctuousness, would be a natural Jaffe, his performance lacks comic energy, and he doesn't seem to be taking any delight in his character's outrageousness. This is not the problem with Heche, who delivers a fiercely physical slapstick turn as Lily. But she lacks the imperious quality necessary for the role and too often seems like a little girl playing dress-up in William Ivey Long's sumptuous period costumes.
Twentieth Century Presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company
Credits: Playwrights: Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur New adaptation by: Ken Ludwig Director: Walter Bobbie Set designer: John Lee Beatty Costume designer: William Ivey Long Lighting designer: Peter Kaczorowski Sound designer: ACME Sound Partners Cast: Oscar Jaffe: Alec Baldwin Lily Garland: Anne Heche Matthew Clark: Tom Aldredge Conductor: Terry Beaver Detective: Patrick Boll Owen O'Malley: Dan Butler Beard/Max Jacobs: Stephen DeRosa Ida Webb: Julie Halston Porter: Robert M. Jimenez Anita Highland: Kellie Overbey George Smith: Ryan Shively Dr. Grover Lockwood: Jonathan Walker
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